The present invention relates to a stackable case for transporting and storing beverage containers, such as twelve ounce and sixteen ounce glass bottles and the like, and in particular, to trays for bottles and covers adapted specifically therefor.
Bottles for soft drinks, beer and other beverages are often stored and transported during the distributing stages thereof in short-walled cardboard trays or in cardboard boxes. These cardboard structures are generally not rugged enough for reuse and therefore must be broken down and discarded by the retailer at his expense. This not only creates a costly and labor intensive process for the retailer, but also contributes to the problem of environmental waste and the already overfilled landfills. In addition, paperboard cartons are flimsy and can collapse when wet. They are also unattractive and generally do not permit the full displaying, merchandising and advertising of the bottled beverage.
An example of a prior art cardboard case is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,752,385 to Woodgate. This case additionally provides a plastic divider which, when placed in the cardboard case, forms separate bottle receiving compartments. The plastic divider, however, does not overcome the aforementioned disadvantages generally associated with paperboard boxes. Thus, there has been a need for a returnable and reusable case for storing and transporting bottles and the like. This case should be light weight, easy to manipulate and carry, able to hold and separate at least two different sized bottles, and economically constructed, since the non-reusable cardboard boxes which it replaces generally cost less than a dime to use. Additionally, it is also preferable to have a case which completely encloses the bottles, thereby preventing the deterioration of the beverage therein which may be caused by exposure to sunlight.
Reusable plastic trays have been developed for transporting and storing bottles such as two-liter beverage bottles. An example of a recent plastic, nesting and stacking storage container is that disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,823,955 of the present assignee. These trays often have a height which is greater than the height of the bottles contained therein such that when stacked the trays do not rest on top of the bottles in the lower tray. Rather, the sides of the trays bear the loads of the upper trays and their contents. These trays do not have covers and thus do not completely enclose the bottles therein. They are also expensive to manufacture, to ship and to store empty as they are relatively large and occupy a large amount of space.
In response to the demand for a more conveniently sized tray, plastic low depth trays have been developed wherein the side walls are lower than the height of the stored bottles. The bottles contained in a lower tray thereby support the weight of the other trays stacked on top of them, and this is particularly well suited for today's plastic, polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles. PET bottles have become particularly popular because of their transparency, light weight and low cost. Even though they are flexible, their walls are strong in tension and thus can safely contain the pressure of the carbonated beverages in them. Their flexible walls can also bear surprisingly high compressive loads, as long as these loads are applied axially. Thus, it is important that the bottles do not tip in these trays, as the loads thereon when stacked would then not be along the longitudinal axes of the bottles, and the loaded bottles would thereby be caused to buckle. This is particularly true for the larger capacity PET bottles, such as the two-liter bottles widely used for soft drinks today.
One commercially successful design of the stackable low depth tray particularly suitable for the two-liter PET bottles is the "Castle Crate" design of the present assignee, such as is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,899,874. For this genre of trays a plurality of columns project upwardly from the bottom crate portion and together with the side walls help define a plurality of bottle retaining pockets. These columns are hollow to permit empty crates to stack top to bottom. These low-profile crate designs have spaced side columns to provide added strength and yet still expose the containers therein. However, since no cover is provided these crate designs do not provide an enclosed case which prevents sunlight deterioration of the beverage within the bottles.
Beverage cans are often sold, as in convenience stores, loose or individually, that is, not in an attached six-pack arrangement. To meet the demand of being able to easily remove individual cans from a case, trays for beverage cans have been developed such as those disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,031,774 to Morris et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,009,053 to Langenbeck et al., and low-depth can trays of the present assignee, as disclosed in copending U.S. application Ser. No. 07/888,479 or PCT International Publication No. WO 90/15758. This tray allows substantial visibility of the cans supported therein while also allowing a single can to be easily removed therefrom. Beverages in twelve or sixteen ounce bottle sizes may also be sold loose or individually. However, to remove the bottles from their six-pack (secondary) packaging, whether a shrink wrap or a cardboard enveloping carton, is a labor intensive procedure which also produces additional waste for disposal. It is desirable, therefore, to provide a bottle case from which bottles may be easily removed and which is reusable.
Some of the known prior art trays, such as that disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,410,099 to de Larosiere, also do not hold their beverage containers in a continuous spaced relation, thus the containers have a tendency to rub against one another or the crate structure while in transport. This action can rub off the container labels or scratch the containers, and presents a particular problem for glass soft drink and beer bottles due to the additional risk of breakage.
Thus, there is a strong need for a reusable and returnable case for bottles which will completely enclose the bottles to prevent the deterioration of their contents due to exposure to external light, hold and separate the bottles to prevent contact between adjacent bottles and with the case, accommodate at least two of the most common sized bottles, be light weight and easy to handle, and be economical to manufacture.